Tag Archives: Frederick Douglass Blvd.

The same team behind Frederick Douglass Blvd’s extremely successful restaurant and bar crawl events , ie Experience Harlem, Harlem Park to Park, have planned a follow-up event for the summer, but this time they are taking the fun to Harlem’s historic Lenox Avenue. On June 18, restaurants such as Chez Lucienne, Corner Social, Settepani, Red Rooster, Sylvia’s Restaurant and more, will be offering food and drink specials from 6 to 10 pm.

A residential building with street front commercial space is finally being built at 2270 and 2272 Frederick Douglass Blvd in Harlem. I use the word finally because this area in Harlem, which was once an abandon lot, construction had started a few years ago and then suddenly stopped-probably due to the 2008 financial crisis is my guess. Now its clear from the scaffolding and signage at the corner of 120th Street and FDB, construction work is well underway.

According to signage on the construction site, the building will have 8 floors and consist of 41 units. PropertyShark states 36 of the 41 units will be residential units. No word on whether this building will be condo or rental! So stay tuned.

I’m sure most of us have noticed by now that Harlem’s Les Ambassades on Frederick Douglass Blvd, aka Patisserie Des Ambassades, is in the midst of redesigning the place. You see it when you walk by.

In order to redesign and still stay open, Les Ambassades had to create new space for their breads and pastries first, which they did right next door at 2200 Frederick Douglass Blvd between 118th and 119th Street. They have recently opened this part of their new construction and the place looks great!

The new shop now has giant sign boards up displaying all of their products. Their pastries sit in new glass counters and the bread is very visible along the back walls for customers to just point at and buy.

Take a look for yourself! Stop on by and see how Les Ambassades is changing things up at their FDB location.

A real estate broker has given us the heads up that Harlem real estate and Harlem’s restaurant row will be featured in this weeks edition of HGTV Selling NY. The broker and two of her clients, who are looking to purchase their first home together, venture into Harlem to look at apartments in the neighborhood. In the course of the episode, the clients receive a tour of Harlem restaurants and shops to show them that everything they have become used to downtown can be found right here in Harlem, specifically along Frederick Douglass Blvd.

Harlem’s restaurant row, aka Frederick Douglass Blvd between 110th and 125th Street, is back in the news again. The New York Times recently spoke with Leon Ellis, the owner of Moca Lounge, Chocolat Restaurant and Harlem Underground, about how this part of Harlem has gone through a complete transformation since he first opened Moca, which was back in 2003. Ellis told the NY Times that his friends thought he was crazy for opening up a restaurant back then. Since 2003, Ellis has expanded his business presence in Harlem on FDB with Chocolat opening about two years ago and then Harlem Underground, a Harlem-themed clothing store.

The owners of bier international were also interviewed for the article and stressed that while this area is going mainstream, they emphasized “we need to find a balance and not forget what was here” in Harlem.

Over the Fourth of July holiday, I caught up with Henock Kejela, the owner of Zoma Ethiopian Restaurant in Harlem and the soon to be Il Forno, a new pizza and salad place, that will be located at 135 West 116th Street, between FDB and ACP Blvd. Kejela told HarlemGal Inc that he is planning on opening his second eating establishment in Harlem in about two weeks. The main product at Il Forno will be fresh pizza made in a wood burning oven.

Kejela let us come inside to take pictures of the work in progress at Il Forno in Harlem. The pizza place is going to have a clean, crisp look. The walls and floors will be predominately white with subway tile on the side walls, and black and white circle tile for the floors. The only color in the place will be on the wood burning over, which was specially made in California and shipped to Harlem.

In my view, this pizza place will be well worth checking out when it opens. The Harlem community knows Kejela can deliver. Zoma, located on the southeast corner of FDB and 113th Street, has received outstanding reviews from the media and is one of the few dining establishments in Harlem that has a Michelin rating. With those kind of credentials, I can’t wait for Il Forno in Harlem to open! Stay tuned…

I went by Frederick Cafe Bistro this morning (June 22) to get an iced latte and a blueberry muffin, and found out they take credit cards as another form of payment. I assumed the cafe only took cash because it is under the same ownership as bier international, which I believe they only take cash, so this was a nice surprise this morning to find out I can use my credit card at Frederick Cafe Bistro!

If you haven’t stopped by Frederick Cafe Bistro, it’s on the southeast corner of FDB and 114th Street! They offer delicious coffee, pastries and pressed sandwiches!

Who was inspired by the recent New York Daily News article about The Beeners and their effort to open Harlem’s first full-service, vegan soul food restaurant? I certainly was! According to the article, Chef Brenda Beener and her son Aaron (mother and son), plan to open their vegan restaurant in August on Frederick Douglass Blvd. near 116th St., which is also known as Harlem’s restaurant row. But before they can open their establishment there is some major financing they must have in place, around $250k. The Beeners have turned to Kickstarter.com (and to us) to help them reach that sum.

There are various donation levels on their Kickstarter page from $5 to $500. If you are interested in helping Seasoned Vegan in Harlem become a reality, make your donation here.

On my way home from yoga this morning (May 12), I noticed that Frederick Cafe Bistro in Harlem appeared to be open. I walked in to double-check and it is definitely open for business. I had a delicious cappuccino!

Drop in and check out Frederick Douglass Blvd’s newest eatery. At the moment Frederick Cafe Bistro, located on the corner of 114th Street and Frederick Douglass Blvd., is serving a full line of hot coffees, i.e. latte, cappuccino, etc. and pastries. A complete menu, which will include hot and cold sandwiches, will be available at a later date.

While my hot coffee drink was delicious, sipping it in a freshly decorated place made it that much sweeter. The decor and layout of Frederick Cafe Bistro is fantastic! The Harlem bistro even pays tribute to Frederick Douglass himself with some of his quotes stenciled throughout the cafe. The quotes are simple, classic and thoughtful. Chris and Ousmane clearly want patrons to know that when they visit their bistro they are in Harlem and their place is named after a very famous African-American.

Again, go by and see the place for yourself! Frederick Cafe Bistro is located at 2104 Frederick Douglass Blvd. Phone is 212-222-0075.

Want a beer to go along with your chicken wings from Atomic Wings in Harlem? How about a glass of wine with your shrimp sliders? This may be a reality soon. Atomic Wings, located on the northeast corner of 113th Street and Frederick Douglass Blvd in Harlem is waiting for final approvals on their liquor license. They hope to have approval in about a month.